PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION: A LOOK AT PROGRESSIVISM

PRESENTATION BY NIC CARLSON

ABOUT MYSELF (NIC CARLSON)

• Graduated High School in 2009 from a rural high school with 650 students• Learned in a schools that mainly believed in perennialism. • Thought perennialism was nice in the fact that teachers were experts in their

field and a good resource but felt it lacked democracy, problem solving development, and group interactions.

• My goal is to teach students in progressivist method through experience and encourage group problem solving and inductive thinking in my classroom. With the internet it is less important for teachers to be masters of their subject, but more as a resource to facilitate knowledge.

PURPOSE OF EDUCATION

• Education is to teach students to become critical thinkers, problem solvers, and productive members of society

• People are constantly facing new problems and the way to educate students for future problems we can’t foresee is too encourage problem solving and critical thinking

PURPOSE OF TEACHER

• Teacher is a facilitator of knowledge and is used as a resource that students can and should use if they get stuck or have a question.

• Teachers should know subject well, but don’t need to be experts in the field because knowledge is readily available in other forms such as in books or online.

• Because so many resources are available to students teachers should try to push students by asking them questions that require stimulate interest, inductive thinking and group problem solving skills

PURPOSE OF STUDENT

• Curriculum in largely driven on student interest, so students must find an interest in some part of the subject they wish to explore.

• Students learn by actively participating in discussions and group projects that require critical thinking and problem solving skills

• In doing this students will gain necessary skills to be a contributing part to our society

BIOLOGY CURRICULUM

• To teach the overview of a broad range of biology (from cell biology to ecology), diving deeper into what interests students more

• To look at current research being done in Biology and ask questions that require critical thinking and problem solving using the material to answer

• Do multiple hands on labs to explore cells, genetics, and ecology so students get a personal experience with Biology

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

• I would like to teach Biology in a high school setting, working with 9th-12th grade students

• Adolescence is a time when the brain is growing new neural connections and is quick to pick things up

• Encourage students to pursue they interests in biology in my class to increase their own curiosity and motivation to learn

• Promote a creative learning environment where students’ ideas are heard and where group hands on learning occurs

INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

• Encourage students to be curious and to explore subject content

• Give students time to have inductive thinking on questions

• Allow students to work together and collaborate on group problems

• Use technology as a resource to increase interest and boost knowledge

ASSESSMENTS

• On new topics I will use surveys and quick writes to assess students prior knowledge

• During a topic, I will check student understand with guided notes and questions when starting a topic and later with short answer questions and quizzes towards the end.

• Since much of the work will be driven by student curiosity there will be less testing than a normal course. Post topic assessments will be mainly projects, labs, and essays mixed with small tests or quizzes.

• Students will be assessed individually on group work to keep all students honest and motivated

PROGRESSIVISM SUMMARY

• The world is constantly in flux and the knowledge needed in society is ever changing

• Education is driven by student curiosity where teacher acts as a facilitator in learning

• Focus on inductive thinking, problem solving, group projects, and “learn by doing”